Tuesday, 21 October 2014

Tell All Tuesday ~ Featured Artist: Janelle Marks

Welcome to the first TAT in a while, I gave this feature a little rest so that I could gather more interviewees to get rollin' again...and now I have, let's roll...

first up is a textile artist with some really beautiful work, ennnnnnnnjjjoy =)

Tell us a little bit about yourself & what kind of artist you are. I’m Janelle Marks and I live in Michigan, USA. I am primarily a textile artist, but I also love to paint with acrylics and mixed media. I have been keeping an art journal for a few years and I love making my own journals too. It is very satisfying to make a journal and fill it with my art. I love to make journal covers out of fabric that are painted and quilted, so they are uniquely mine. I dye or paint most the fabric that I use to create art quilts and textile crafts. I also use recycled or reclaimed textiles along with new materials to create my textile art. I have a loving husband and five kids and use all the time that I can carve out of my days for creating art.

What is the biggest challenge you personally face as an artist and how do you overcome it? My biggest challenge is using the time that I have available for creating without wasting it. It’s tough to fit creativity into my daily life sometimes. I want to be able to develop as an artist and find my own voice, but some days it is a challenge just to get into the studio and create anything at all. At the same time I don’t want to rush these years with my kids still at home and not be there for them. Finding a balance is difficult and takes a lot of figuring and flexibility to make it all work. I try my best to find that balance because I feel that I am at my best as a mother and person when I have some creative time every day.

Do you think you have achieved a uniquely recognisable style as an artist, or do you find it a struggle to find your own style? I find it difficult to see my style sometimes and feel that I am all over the spectrum. I love making a lot of different types of art and crafts, but sometimes that makes my style hard to see. At the same time I don’t want to make just one kind of art because I would get bored. I do like to follow each idea passionately, but then I want to go onto the next new thing. I am contemplating working on a longer series right now, so that I can focus on one thing long enough to go deep into the process and the feelings behind the art. Hopefully that will help my style emerge.

What do you find easiest / hardest in your art?When I first started taking mixed media classes on-line I found it really hard to draw or paint a female face. After practicing for three years I can make a face that I’m happy with much easier. I still struggle sometimes to get the faces just the way I want them, but it has become much easier. Practicing consistently will help improve your skills and allow you to make art that speaks to your soul even if it isn't classically perfect. My goal is to practice regularly so that I can improve even more.

Tell us where can we find out more about you & your art?My website is Hands and Harts. I blog about once a week and I also sell my art from my website. You can find me on Facebook too, I love interacting with people and would love it if you would come a visit me on-line.

Thanks for a great interview Janelle =) I LOVE the last piece with the trees, just beautiful. I also really liked what you said about 'I feel that I am at my best as a mother and person when I have some creative time every day' because even without 5 kids I can say it is real easy to find reasons not to find time to be creative, so I cannot imagine the added pressure of that with. But what I love is that you feel it makes you better as a mother, and person generally, because our society doesn't really resonate with this, in honesty we are taught that it's more noble/right/normal to martyr ourselves than to ever give any kind of self service, so thank you for being such a good advocate for this =)